Hanford contractor has plan for difficult work

Article Excerpt: Washington Closure Hanford has settled on a plan for one of its most hazardous environmental cleanup assignments — retrieving radioactive waste dropped down long pipes buried vertically in the ground.

The Department of Energy contractor is proposing a keep-it-simple approach for the underground pipes at the 618-10 Burial Ground. It would use mostly commercially available equipment and technology to treat the waste underground — breaking it up and in some cases grouting it — before it’s brought to the surface and packaged for disposal.